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Hongjun Zhao

This chapter discusses the background and significance of the study, and introduces the main subjects and basic concepts of the book, such as the peasant economy and governmental governance. The author presents an overview of the book, the research method used, and conclusion, and indicates the innovation and limitation of the study.

Monograph Chapter

Hongjun Zhao

Takatoshi Ito, Satoshi Koibuchi, Kiyotaka Sato and Junko Shimizu

Chapter 1 introduces the theme of this book, exchange rate risk for the exporters, by showing the sensitivity of corporate earnings and stock prices to exchange rate fluctuations. When the yen appreciates, corporate earnings and the Nikkei Index tend to fall. Faced with a long-run trend of yen appreciation, Japanese exporting firms have taken many countermeasures to lessen the exchange rate impact on their sales and profits. By invoicing in yen, they can avoid the exchange rate risk. However, importers suffer from exchange risk and have to absorb the change in import costs by changing their profit margins. Hence, which currency exports should be invoiced in depends on the nature of the products, the relationship between exporter and importer, and whether the exported goods are for the local market or for re-exporting after assembly. The chapter introduces these concepts and sets up the questions to be answered in later chapters.

Edited by Young-Myon Lee and Bruce E. Kaufman

Young-Myon Lee and Bruce E. Kaufman

In order to contextualize Korean employment and industrial relations (EIR) in the field of EIR thought, a field largely dominated by Western ideas and experience, this chapter breaks down Korean EIR into its component parts using two particular frameworks: a union/labor management model and an employment relationship model. This structured approach brings to the fore often overlooked facts regarding Korean institutions, collective actors, socio-economic and political forces that have shaped its employment relations and industrial environment – namely, the preponderance of small to medium-sized enterprises, the highly politicized evolution of unions and employer associations and their connection to the besieged and suffering ‘haan’ mentality, the movement away from Confucian-system paternal relations and the preference for strong, centralized leadership. The chapter highlights key events that have driven a narrow labor/management bias in Korean EIR, especially the Great Labor Offensive, and examines the whole through Kaufman’s employment relations model.

Ju-Ho Lee, Hyeok Jeong and Song Chang Hong

Over the last half century, Korea successfully escaped from poverty and socio-economic instability to achieve remarkable economic growth and democracy. An average Korean lived on 2.3 dollars per day in the 1950s; she now earns about 60 dollars per day. Since 1960, the Korean economy has maintained a 6 percent annual growth rate of real GDP per capita, becoming the 13th largest economy in the world (Maddison Project, 2013). This achievement is regarded as a historic case of sustainable growth. While several factors contributed to this outstanding growth, there is emerging consensus that Korea’s achievement of both sustained economic development and democracy is mainly due to its investment in people. At its initial stage of development, Korea faced problems similar to most other developing countries. To escape from a vicious cycle of poverty, Korea had to overcome a legacy of antiquated traditions in education and training. Koreans had traditionally neglected vocational and technical training, owing partly to Confucianism, which praises scholars of the humanities and farmers while disregards professions in manufacturing and trade. Because parents encouraged their children to pursue academic education in colleges and hold white-collar jobs, industries lagged behind with few technicians, skilled workers, and blue-collar workers. To make matters worse, Japanese colonial rule prohibited Koreans from accumulating both physical and human capital for entrepreneurship in industrial sectors. The three years of the Korean War with the division of the Korean peninsula also devastated the economic and social infrastructure and fundamentals for economic growth.